Burial Ground
by ChristyK
Summary: The brothers investigate an old Indian burial ground where a missing artifact seems to be the cause of numerous deaths
1. Chapter 1

And here's another one of my dumb little stories. You guys must be getting pretty sick of them by now. But I can't help it….I love to write them. Hope some of you like this one.

**Burial Ground**

Dean walked into the motel room and handed Sam a beer. He then popped one open himself and sat on the bed behind his brother who was sitting at a table his computer opened in front of him.

"You still on that thing?" He asked Sam. His brother had been on and off the computer all day….mostly on.

"Yeah…I think I found something."

"What?"

"It seems there's something weird going on in Yellowstone."

"Wyoming?"

"Yeah." Sam glanced up at his brother then back down at the computer. "It says there's been a bunch of strange animal attacks…. bears, mountain lions, snakes….. It also says numerous people have been injured or killed from healthy trees that apparently fell over for no reason."

"So what does all that have to do with us? It's a wildlife park Sam ….these things happen."

"Yeah but I did some research on the area. It seems that there is an old Apache burial ground in the park near where these attacks occurred."

"And?"

"There is an old legend that says if anything is removed from the burial grounds nature will rebel until the object is replaced."

"So you think that's what's happening?"

"Well it fits the legend."

"It could just be coincidence Sam."

"Or not….. Look, we're in the area Dean, what does it hurt to check it out?"

"Okay…guess you're right…..Let's get a good night's sleep and we'll head up there tomorrow."

**The next day**

They got up early the next morning and made it to the park in two hours.

"Looks like they might have closed the park." Dean said as he looked around the parking lot. There were a few cars there but not near as many as usual.

"The deaths must have kept people away, but the site said the park was open as usual." Sam looked over at the ranger's station. "We better go sign in."

They walked into the ranger's station and were greeted by a man in a brown uniform who was sitting at his desk.

"Welcome to Yellowstone ….How long you boys planning on staying?" The ranger asked as the brothers approached his desk.

"Probably a week or two." Sam said.

"You boys hear about the animal attacks we've been having?" He asked as he gave them papers to sign.

"Yeah….We thought maybe the park would be closed." Sam said as he signed a fake name then handed the paper to Dean.

"I think it should be but the state wants us to stay open. Guess they figure they'll lose a lot of money if they close down." The ranger then handed them two other papers. "I'll need you both to sign these just in case…"

"In case of what?" Dean asked.

"This is just in case you're injured …or worse in the park. This relinquishes the parks responsibility for any injuries that might occur while visiting here."

They signed the papers then handed them back to the man who in return handed them a map.

"You boys keep to the trails and stay away from the animals. … Follow the rules and you should be fine."

"Thanks." Dean said as he and Sam turned and headed back to the car.

Sam studied the map then pulled out a map he had pulled off of the internet and compared them.

"Looks like the area that's been hit the hardest is about ten miles from here."

Dean gathered a stash of weapons from the trunk then rolled them up in their backpacks.

"Well Daniel Boone let's go find the trail." Dean smiled over at Sam.

"You know we really don't even know what or who we're looking for." Sam said as they walked toward the woods. The best they could do was hope they ran into who ever took the Indian artifacts off the burial ground and try to replace them. If the person had already left the area they knew that the only thing, according to the legend, that would appease the spirits would be a human sacrifice.

"Hey, this was your idea buddy…You want to back out?" Dean was almost hoping Sam would say yes. The odds of finding the person who took the object would be like looking for a needle in a haystack, plus he would prefer sleeping in a nice soft bed tonight rather then on the hard forest ground.

"No. We're here; we might as well see if there is anything we can do."

"Then let's go." Dean readjusted his backpack then followed his brother into the woods.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

I appreciate the reviews, thanks. Hope you like the story.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter two

They had been walking for about an hour and a half when they decided to stop near a pond to take a break and eat something. They sat down opposite each other and took off their backpacks. Sam reached in his and took out two energy bars and was just about to toss one to Dean when he suddenly stopped.

"Don't move." He told Dean as he watched a black mass slowly begin to materialize behind his brother.

"What?"

"Don't move." Sam repeated.

Dean froze when he saw the look on his brother's face.

"What's wrong?" He asked keeping as still as possible. "Is it a bear?" Dean knew with the way his luck was going lately there probably was a grizzly bear standing behind him. "I know it's a bear isn't it?"

"No."

"Then what?"

"Bees."

"Bees? How many, a little or a lot?"

"Oh I'd say maybe thousands of them."

"Oh great."

"Dean …when I tell you to run, run like hell. Jump in that pond over there and dive under the water and stay there."

"Okay." Dean now could hear a loud buzzing behind his head. Every instinct in him told him to run immediately but he waited for his brother's command.

"One….two…. both jumped up, ran to the pond, and dove into it.

The swarm of bees followed them then hovered over the water above their heads waiting for them to resurface.

Under the water they could look up and see the black mass of bees right above them. Dean tapped Sam on the shoulder and pointed toward the center of the pond. Together they swam under water and quietly resurfaced in the middle of the pond.

They then watched as the swarm finally broke up and flew back into the woods.

"Damn that was close." Dean said as they swam back to their backpacks.

"Do you think that had anything to do with the Apache curse?" Sam asked as they climbed out of the water.

"It could, or it could just be a swarm of bees that we disturbed while they were looking for a new nesting ground." Dean pulled on his backpack. "But let's not wait to find out…. Let's get out of here."

They continued walking keeping an eye out for anything strange.

**Later**

Sam pulled out his map and studied it.

"I think we're almost at the burial grounds. It should be right over that ridge."

They walked over the ridge and stood looking down at a large patch of ground surrounded by rocks.

"This it?" Dean asked.

"Yeah." Sam looked at his map to make sure.

"It doesn't look like much."

"What did you expect? The bodies have been here for over a hundred years, there's not much left except some of the objects that were put by the grave sides." Sam pointed to some broken pieces of pottery and pieces of bows and arrows barely recognizable now.

"This place is well off the beaten path. It's funny anyone found it."

"We found it didn't we?"

"Yeah but we had a map and knew what we were looking for."

"Well apparently they did too, or else they just stumbled upon it. However they found it doesn't matter. What matters is that we got to find the artifact and replace it before more people die."

"So this was Apache land at some point." Dean looked over the area imagining how it must have looked like years ago.

"You know it's really sad how the white man came in and destroyed their way of life and now years later they even disrespect their burial ground."

It was then they heard a soft moan coming from behind some rocks.

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for the reviews.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter three

They both pulled out their guns and walked toward the rocks. Once there they separated and went around opposite sides of the rock. When they met at the back they found a man lying facedown in a pool of blood. Dean dropped to his knees next to him while Sam kept his gun trained on him in case it was some kind of trick. Dean gently rolled the man over then hissed in his breath when he saw the man's condition. The entire front of the man's body including his face had been ripped to shreds. One eye hung out of its socket, the other eye was missing. Dean looked up at Sam; they both knew it was a miracle the man was still alive but they also knew there was nothing they could do for him.

"Take it easy buddy." Dean said softly as he put his hand on the man's shoulder and gave it a soft squeeze. Sam took off his backpack and took out a bottle of water and handed it to Dean. He cradled the man in his arm as he held the water up to his mouth. The man gratefully gulped down the water but then began coughing as the water hit his injured stomach.

"What happened? Is there anyone else out here?" Dean asked.

"Bear…. It killed Tim…..Andy, Mike, Rob and Andrea got away….At least I think they did…." The man managed to get out before he began moaning in pain. "Oh God it hurts…."

"I know buddy." Dean hated to question the man but he knew he had to find out if this man's friends were the ones that took the artifact. "I need to ask you something…..I need to know if your friends took anything from the burial ground."

The man's face turned toward Dean's voice.

"Is that why….is that why all these things are happening?"

"What's happening?"

"Wolves, bears, snakes…they kept attacking us. A wolf attacked Tim first …..then the bear attacked him and killed him then turned on me…..The others took off…..they might be dead too…."

"I need to find them….I need to replace whatever it is they took.….Do you have any idea which way they went?"

"We were….we were heading toward a cabin….up by Mirror Lake…I…I….." The man gasped in pain but continued. "I told them ….I told them not to take it….I told them it wasn't right….."

"What was it? What did they take?"

"It looked….it looked like part of a bow….it was wood….it had carvings on it…"

"Who took it?"

"Andy. Andy took it…"

"And he still has it?"

The man tried to speak but then began choking on his own blood.

"Take it easy buddy…take it easy." Dean tried to calm the man as he looked up at Sam. He knew even if they tried to get the man out of there and back to safety he wasn't going to make it, he had been too badly injured. But they didn't have to decide what to do, the decision was made for them. The man suddenly cried out in agony and his body went limp. They checked his vital signs but the man was gone and even if they did CPR and managed to bring him back to life there was no way he was going to live, not with all the damage that had been done to his body.

"Well at least we know who has the artifact." Dean said as he stood up.

"Yeah, and that he was heading towards Mirror Lake."

"But who's to say he still is, or if he is that he'll make it."

"Well it's the only thing we have to go on." Sam looked down at the body. "So what should we do with the body?"

"Guess we'll have to bury it….keep the animals from getting to it. We can't waste time carrying it back to the ranger's station. We'll mark the map with the location and when this is over we'll make sure the ranger's get it."

"Hopefully we'll be around to do that."

"Well if we're not, a lot more people are going to die."

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

I appreciate the reviews, thanks.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter four

**Later**

They had taken their collapsible shovels from their backpacks and buried the body then marked the site on the map with an X so it could be recovered later. Sam then studied the map.

"We're here…"Sam pointed to a spot on the map. "…and Mirror Lake is about ten miles north of here."

"Well then we better get moving."

With one last glance back at the grave they turned and headed toward Mirror Lake. The forest was dark and damp due to the large trees which blocked out the sunlight.

"It seems cruel to just leave him there." Sam said as they walked along the trail.

"Well we can't take him with us, and we can't waste time taking him back to the ranger's station and answering a million questions. We got to get that artifact back to the burial ground as soon as possible or more people are going to die."

"And what if we can't find it?"

"Well the legend says if the artifact isn't returned the next best thing is a human sacrifice."

"And where are we going to find someone to sacrifice?"

"I don't know….maybe Andy, after all he's the one who took it in the first place."

"Dean we can't just take Andy back to the burial ground and shoot him."

Dean looked over at his brother.

"We might have to."

"Tell me you're not serious."

"Sam, I don't like it anymore then you do but it might be the only way to stop these attacks."

"What if we can't find the artifact or Andy, what do we do then?"

"I have no idea….I guess we'll just have to improvise."

Sam glanced over at Dean wondering what he had in mind.

**Later**

They had been walking for about three miles when a noise caused Dean to glance up. He didn't have time to shout a warning to his brother but instead pushed Sam out of the way as a large branch fell from a tree narrowly missing both of them.

"What the hell?" Sam looked up and saw more branches bending in the windless forest. He could tell they could break at any moment. "Dean run!"

They both took off running as branch after branch began raining down on them. A particularly large one landed on top of Dean.

"Dean!" Sam ran over to his brother and quickly pulled him out from under the branch. He was just about to help Dean up when another branch crashed down on both of them. Just before it hit them Sam managed to cover his brother's body with his own then winced in pain as the branch fell across his back. After a few minutes the assault was finally over. They both lay on the ground stunned for a few seconds before Dean gently crawled out from under Sam.

"You okay Sam?" Dean asked as he reached down and offered Sam his hand. Sam took it and began to slowly get up.

"Yeah…yeah I'm fine." Sam winced as he reached behind him and rubbed the small of his back.

"You sure?"

"Yeah…just had the wind knocked out of me for a second."

"Let me check you out." Dean walked behind Sam and pulled up his shirt. He could see a red bruise forming on his brother's lower back where he had taken the hit. "It gotcha pretty good." He told Sam as he pulled his shirt back down.

"I'll be okay." Sam turned to look at Dean. "That was really weird. It was like the trees had a life of their own…as if they were throwing their branches at us."

"Yeah I never saw anything like it before." Dean looked around the forest. "I wonder what's going to attack us next?"

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

Thanks for the reviews.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter five

They ran out of the woods and stood in a small clearing trying to catch their breath.

"Boy that was weird." Dean said as he looked back at the trees.

"Yeah….it reminded me of The Wizard of Oz."

"Who?"

"The Wizard of Oz." When Dean looked at him Sam could tell he had no idea what he was talking about. "The Wizard of Oz." Sam repeated. When he got a blank look from Dean he continued. "You know where the trees were throwing apples at Dorothy and the Scarecrow?"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Don't tell me you never saw The Wizard of Oz?"

"Yeah I've heard of it….but I never watched it."

"It's a move…a real classic. Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Lion go to Oz to find the Wizard and…." Sam stopped when Dean started laughing.

"Can you be anymore girly then you already are?"

"I can't believe you never saw it."

"I can't believe you did."

"Dean everybody saw The Wizard of Oz."

"Not everyone."

"Well then everyone but you. … I remember I had dreams about the monkey people for weeks afterward."

"Monkey people? You got to be kidding." Dean laughed then suddenly became serious as he looked back toward the woods.

"What's the matter?" Sam also looked over toward the woods.

"Shhhhh." Dean put his finger to his lips.

"What? What is it?"

"Don't you hear that?"

"What?" Sam listened but all he heard were birds chirping. "Dean what is it?"

"That!" Dean pointed toward the sky where a dark cloud of birds rose out of the woods as one and started flying toward them.

"You got to be kidding." Sam said in disbelief. "First The Wizard of Oz and now The Birds." He followed Dean as he slowly backed toward the woods at the other end of the clearing.

"Don't make any sudden movement….just keep backing up real slow…"

They continued backing up as the cloud of birds followed them. But soon the entire flock of birds began swooping down on them.

"Son of a bitch!" Dean shouted as he swatted at the birds with his hands.

"Ouch! Damn it ouch!" Sam cried out as the birds pecked at his neck and hands. "What are we going to do?" He shouted over to his brother as he too swatted at the birds.

"Hang in there Sam I got an idea! Just protect your eyes!" Dean shouted to his brother as he reached in his backpack. Finally he found what he was looking for. He pulled out a road flare and lit it. He then began swinging it over his and Sam's head. He soon got the result he wanted. The birds, scared of the bright light, stopped their assault and flew back into the woods.

"Good thinking." Sam said as he wiped blood from his face.

"This is nuts….We're here to protect the burial ground, so why the hell are the spirits that guard the ground attacking us?"

"I don't know. Maybe they've heard enough of the white man's promises and lies over the years that they don't trust anyone."

"Well we've got a ways to go yet till we get to Mirror Lake. Let's just hope this Andy guy's there and we can end this vendetta."

**Later**

They had traveled a few more miles without any incidents when they came upon a rockslide.

"Careful Sam." Dean warned his brother as Sam started to climb over the rocks which were blocking their path.

"We got to cross them to get to the lake."

"I know….but just be careful. This could be a trap."

They both gingerly picked their way across the rocks and were almost to the other side when they heard a weak voice.

"Help….please help me."

They both began looking for the source of the voice.

"Dean over here." Sam called out to his brother as he knelt by a pile of rocks. Buried underneath them they could barely make out a man's face and shoulder.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

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**Burial Ground**

Chapter six

The man was barely visible beneath the large boulders that covered him.

Dean and Sam glanced at each other, they both realized there was no way they could lift the rocks off of the man, even attempting to would only cause him further damage.

"Help me…" The man pleaded weakly as blood bubbled from his lips, a sure sign of internal injuries.

Tears filled Sam's eyes as he looked at his brother wondering how they were going to tell the man that he was beyond help.

Dean pulled out his cell phone but put it back in his pocket when he didn't get a signal. He looked at Sam and shook his head. There was nothing they could do for the man so he took a bottle of whiskey out of his bag and offered him a drink, maybe it would at least ease the pain a little. He carefully lowered it into the narrow hole next to the man's face and he took two grateful swallows.

"T…Thanks…."

"Are you with anyone?"

"Yeah…but they…they left me here…."

"What's your name?" Dean asked as he knelt next to the man.

"Rob."

"Rob?" Dean could barely make out what the man was saying.

"Yeah…"

"Rob was there an Andy with you?"

The man gave a little nod.

"Is he still alive?"

"Yeah….I think so…."

"Is he still headed for Mirror Lake?" Dean hated questioning the man but he had to know the answers if they were going to try and end the curse.

"Yeah." The man looked at Dean. "Who are you? …How do you know Andy."

"We've been looking for him."

The man winced in pain and coughed weakly.

"Can you….can you get me out of here?"

Dean shook his head.

"I'm sorry." He didn't want to lie to the man and give him false hope.

"But we'll bring back help." Sam quickly added not wanting the man to know how truly helpless the situation was.

"Good…good…" The man relaxed a little.

Both brothers knew that even if they could lift the rocks off of him he probably already sustained injuries that would prove fatal.

Sam looked at Dean and motioned that he needed to talk to him. They walked a short distance away.

"What are we going to do? We can't just leave him here to die."

"There's nothing we can do Sam."

"It could take him hours, or even a day to die. We can't let him suffer like that."

"You're right." Dean took out his gun.

"You can't just shoot him!" Sam looked at Dean in disbelief.

"Well what do you want me to do? He's suffering Sam."

"You can't just shoot him like an animal."

"It'll be quick." When he saw the look on Sam's face he added. "Sam its better then letting him die a slow painful death." When he saw Sam still wasn't convinced he asked. "Well what do you suggest?"

"I don't know." Sam looked back at the man and was torn about what to do. He knew the man was going to die either way, either quick with a bullet, or slow and painful under the rocks.

Once again the decision was made for them. They both looked up as they heard a low rumble coming from the top of the rocks. They then watched as the rocks begin to move slightly then slowly start to tumble down the mountain toward them. They glanced at each other for a second before Dean shouted.

"Run!"

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

Thanks for the reviews.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter seven

They both took off running across the rock slide in opposite directions being careful not to slip on the rocks and become wedged in the cracks between the boulders. They had just managed to clear the slide when the avalanche of rocks rumbled past them. They immediately turned around and looked for each other and were relieved to see that they both had survived.

"You okay Sam?" Dean shouted over to his brother.

"Yeah…You?"

"Not a scratch."

"Stay there…I'll be right over." Sam once more began climbing across the rocks; he knew the lake was in the direction that Dean was.

"Be careful Sam." Dean stood at the edge of the slide watching his brother and keeping his eye out for any indication of another slide.

Sam passed the area where Rob had been trapped and stopped. All he could see now were blood covered rocks; the body had been completely covered. He hesitated for a few seconds wondering if he was still alive and if he should try to dig him out.

"Sam get out of there! Get off the rocks!" Dean shouted a warning to his brother. He knew at any moment another rock slide could sweep Sam away.

Sam reluctantly left the site and headed for Dean.

"Poor guy." He said when he reached him.

"Yeah, but there was nothing we could have done for him. He was busted up inside and even getting those rocks off of him wouldn't have helped."

Sam looked back over at the rocks.

"This spirit or whatever it is really means business….You know Dean…." Sam said as they once more continued toward the lake. "…we might not be able to stop this thing." He took out the map and put an X over the spot where Rob's body was.

"Well if we can find this Andy and he still has the bow it should be just a matter of getting it off of him and taking it back to the burial ground….at least that's what the legend says."

"But what if Andy doesn't have the thing with him or if we can't find him?"

"If that happens then I guess we're screwed….unless we find someone who's willing to be sacrificed to the Indian Gods."

"Well that's not likely."

"Well then I guess we leave and never look back."

"But what about the deaths, they'll just keep happening?"

"What about them Sam? …Look, we didn't cause this Andy did, and if we can't stop it it's not our fault. I'm not going to spend the time I have left worrying about something I can't fix….and I don't want you to either. Life's too short Sam…if we can't stop it we move on. There are plenty of other things out there that we can stop."

"I know you're right but…."

"But what? We can't win them all Sam, and once I'm gone I don't want you to try to."

Tears welled up in Sam's eyes at the reminded that Dean wasn't going to be around much longer. He turned his face away from his brother not wanting him to see them. But Dean had noticed. He hated reminding his brother of his date with death but it wasn't going to do either of them any good to ignore the fact that in a few months he'd be gone. They continued walking for the next half hour in silence, each lost in his own thoughts, Sam trying to figure some way of getting Dean out of his deal with the demon, and Dean worrying about what was going to happen to Sam after he was gone. They suddenly came to a large dry river bed. Sam pulled out the map.

"There's no other way around it." He said to Dean as he studied the map. "This river must have been dried for years or it wouldn't be marked 'dry river bed' on the map."

"I don't know..." Dean stood at the top of the river bank and looked up and down the dry cracked ground where the river once flowed. "I just don't trust it….Its pretty far to the other side and if we get in trouble out there in the middle we're screwed."

"There's no other way to Mirror Lake."

"Any place where the river is narrower?"

"Yeah…but it's about fifteen miles out of our way. It narrows a little bit but not much."

Dean looked up at the sky; there wasn't a cloud in sight. He knew that the area was known for flash flooding but with no possibility of rain in the area they should be able to make it across with no problem.

"What do you think?"

Sam was hesitant too, but it was the only way to reach Mirror Lake without having to waste a day walking to the narrower section. He wondered how many other people might die if they did that.

"I say we go for it."

"Okay…then let's do it."

They cautiously headed down into the river bed.

TBC


	8. Chapter 8

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**Burial Ground**

Chapter eight

They hurried toward the other side.

"I can't believe we made it." Dean said when they were more then halfway across the river bed and nothing had happened.

"Not quite." Sam said as he looked down at his feet as water began quickly seeping up from the ground.

"What the hell?" Dean said as he looked down at his own feet which were now standing ankle deep in the rapidly rising water.

"An underground spring?" Sam asked hopefully as they tried to move as fast as they could through the rapidly rising water.

"What are the odds of that?" Dean said as the water was soon up to mid thigh making it more and more difficult to run. He slipped on a rock which was now hidden by the water and almost lost his footing. "Watch out for the rocks." He warned his brother.

The water kept rising making it impossible to walk and they soon had to swim. But what made it even worse was that as the water rose the current became stronger and began sweeping the boys away from the shore line.

"Stay together!" Dean shouted over to his brother as he fought the current and tried to get close to Sam. His main fear was that he and Sam would become separated. He figured if he could get close to his brother they could lace their backpack straps together, then no matter what happened they'd at least be together.

But the river had other ideas, it began to pull the brothers further and further apart. The current was becoming even stronger and the rocks in the river soon turned it into dangerous obstacles as their bodies raced paced them. The brothers tried to use their backpacks as shields against the sharp edges of the rocks. They would try to turn in the water as they approached a rock and let their backpacks take the hit. But the process of trying to turn in the strong current was tiring and soon they began taking painful hits on their arms and legs. Sam watched as Dean took a particularly nasty hit on his leg. Dean threw his head back and grimaced in pain.

"You okay?" Sam shouted over to his brother when he saw the pained expression on Dean's face. Dean looked over toward Sam but the pained expression suddenly turned to fear. He saw that his brother was heading straight toward a large rock that jutted out of the water.

"Sam! Sam look out!" Dean threw his arm up and pointed toward the rock.

Sam saw the rock and tried to turn his back to it so he wouldn't take a direct hit and snap an arm or leg. But the water kept swirling him around and he ended up hitting the rock hard with his shoulder. Dean then watched as Sam's head snapped back as his head took the next hit. The next thing Dean saw was Sam's face covered in blood his head hanging limp to the side.

"Sam! Sammy!" Dean shouted as he tried his best to swim over to his brother. It looked like Sam was unconscious and Dean knew he could drown if he didn't wake up. But the current pushed Sam away from him and soon Dean lost sight of him. "Sammy!"

Dean tried to swim after his brother but it was impossible, the current was too strong. He yelped in pain as his already injured leg took another hit. There was no way he could follow Sam so he tried his best to make it to the river bank. At least if he could get out of the river he could follow it and hopefully find Sam. But what if he couldn't find him? What if the river pulled Sam's body under and wouldn't release it? What if Sam was dead? No he wouldn't let himself think that. Sam was strong and a good swimmer. He was only dazed and once he shook off the blow he'd be fine….he had to be. But he knew his brother had taken a hard hit and had seen his blood covered face. He tried to get the image out of his mind as he let the current take him closer and closer to the shoreline. Finally when he was within a few feet he used all the strength he had left to make it to the river bank. He managed to pull himself out of the river and lay on the ground totally exhausted. After a few seconds he managed to stand up then winced in pain as he put pressure on his injured leg. He then looked down the river; his face was etched with worry when he saw no sign of his brother.

TBC


	9. Chapter 9

Thanks for the reviews

**Burial Ground**

Chapter nine

When Sam woke up a few hours later he was lying on the river bank. His first thought was if Dean was okay. He quickly sat up and regretted it immediately as a sharp pain shot through his head. He reached up and touched the nasty lump on the side of his head which was bleeding profusely.

"Dean!" He called out then winced as another pain shot through his head. He took off his back pack and pulled out a white undershirt which he ripped a strip off of and tied around his head to stop the bleeding. It was all he had; Dean had their first aide kit in his backpack. He slowly got to his feet and stood looking down the river. Where was Dean? Was he further down the river or had he managed to get to shore up river? Or….was he dead? "Dean!" Sam shouted again then shut his eyes as his head felt like it was splitting in two.

They had always told each other if they got separated to head for their original destination and hopefully they would meet up there. But what if Dean was hurt or even worse? Or what if he had been swept further down the river? Sam had no idea what to do. If he headed down river he could miss his brother who might be heading toward Mirror Lake. But if Dean was down river and was hurt…..

"Dean!" Sam shouted again.

He pulled out his map then took out his compass. The lake should be a few miles east of where he was at. He decided he'd head down river for a short while and if he didn't find Dean he'd then head toward Mirror Lake and pray that he'd run into him there.

**Up river**

Dean followed the river hoping he'd spot Sam, his leg causing him agony with each step. He tried to ignore the pain. He knew his leg wasn't broken only badly bruised but he also knew it would eventually become numb making it even harder to walk. He could only hope that he found Sam before that happened.

"Sam! Sammy!" He shouted every few minutes praying he'd hear an answer. Tears filled his eyes at the thought that when he found his brother he might be dead. No, he wasn't going to allow himself to think that. Sam was fine, probably heading in his direction. But when he rounded a bend and saw no sign of his brother his hopes were smashed. "Damn it Sammy where are you?" Dean wiped angrily at his tears.

He had tried to protect his brother all his life and now in a second Sam had been ripped from his hands.

"Sammy!"

And then he saw it….blood smeared grass. He quickly hurried over to it. Was it Sam's blood? The amount of blood was substantial and if it was his brother he could be bleeding to death. But where was he? Had he fallen back into the river, or had he headed toward Mirror Lake? Or maybe it wasn't Sam's blood at all. Maybe a wolf or bear had taken down a deer and it was the deer's blood on the grass. He had no way of knowing. He figured he'd head down river for another half hour and if he still didn't find Sam he'd head toward Mirror Lake, hopefully Sam was headed that way.

He had walked for another twenty minutes when he heard a cry of pain coming from down river

"Sam!" He ran as fast as his bad leg allowed him to. He could hear the painful screams coming from the other side of a hill he was running up. "Sammy!" He called out as he pulled out his gun.

When he got to the top of the hill he watched in horror as a pack of wolves began attacking the man below. He could only see the back of the man but he recognized Sam's dark green jacket and his long brown hair.   
"Nooooooo!" He screamed as he watched the wolves pull the man to the ground and begin to rip him apart.

TBC


	10. Chapter 10

I appreciate the reviews, thanks.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter ten

Dean fired his gun at the wolves as he ran down the hill toward the bloody scene.

"Get away from him!"

He was too far away to actually hit the wolves but the sound of the gun shots sent them running off in different directions.

"Sam!" Dean screamed as he fell to his knees next to the body which was lying on his stomach and gently turned him over. "Sammy…." The man looked enough like Sam to be his brother but it wasn't him. Dean let out the breath he didn't realize he had been holding. He immediately began to check the man's injuries and could tell they were massive. Dean knew he was beyond help. The man's eyes suddenly flew open and they pleaded with Dean to help him. He tried to talk but his throat had been severely damaged and no sound came out.

"Take it easy buddy…take it easy. Help's coming…" Dean lied to the man trying to give him some hope even though he knew there wasn't any. Even if he could get him to the hospital there would be no way to save him, he was too badly injured. He squeezed the man's shoulder trying to comfort him as he looked down river hoping to see some sign of his brother; he never heard the man and women who came out of the woods behind him.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" The man asked.

Dean spun around on his knees still holding the gun. When he saw the couple he quickly lowered it as he stood up.

"I was hiking with my brother and we got separated."

The man and woman looked over at the river which was still filled with rapidly flowing water.

"What the hell's going on? That was a dry river bed when we came through here a few hours back."

"It's hard to explain….Are you Andy?"

"No." The man looked at him suspiciously. "Who are you and why are you looking for Andy."

Dean figured he might as well tell them about the curse, he knew it would sound crazy but he didn't have time to beat around the bush. When he was finished he looked down at the man on the ground who now had blood gurgling out of his mouth and was quickly fading.

"Is this Andy?" Dean asked as he once more knelt on the ground and pulled the man into his arms trying to help him breathe a little easier and trying to give him what comfort he could. But the gesture was in vain, the man went into convulsions and shortly after died. Dean gently lowered him to the ground. "Is this Andy?" He asked again.

The man nodded as he stared at his friend's body.

"Then you must be Mike and Andrea."

"How do you know us?" Andrea asked.

"I ran across a friend of yours and he told me your names." Dean shook his head sadly. "This curse is going to kill more people unless we can find the bow and take it back to the burial ground." Dean pulled off the dead man's backpack and went through it but couldn't find the artifact.

"How do we know you're telling us the truth? How do we know you're not some kind of a lunatic running around out here in the woods?" Mike asked. "How do we know you just don't want to rob us?"

"You don't." Dean could see the fear in the man's eyes and didn't blame him one bit. His friends were dying one by one and then some stranger tells him a weird story about an Indian curse. No, he didn't blame the man at all. "Look…first I need to find my brother; he got swept away in the river. Then I need you to show me where you've been. Maybe Andy hid the bow…I need to find it….I need to return it to its rightful place. It's the only thing that will end this curse, and end these deaths." Dean walked a few steps down river then turned back to the couple. "I think we should stick…."

He didn't have a chance to finish his sentence. Mike had pulled a gun out of his backpack and now had it pointed at him. Dean held his hands out to his side.

"Drop the gun!" Mike ordered.

"Look ….I know you're scared, you have a right to be after what happened to your friends. But I'm not the enemy. The enemy is out there all around us. Now if I don't find that bow more people are going to die. Do you want that on your conscious?"

"I said drop the gun!" Mike's hand shook as he held the gun still pointed at Dean.

"I need this gun….and I need to find my brother…I suggest we all work together or none of us will make it out of these woods alive." Dean kept his hands out at his sides trying to show them he meant them no harm. He thought he had just about convinced them to go with him but it was then he saw the fear on their faces' as they looked at something behind him.

TBC


	11. Chapter 11

Thanks for the reviews.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter eleven

Dean slowly turned around and saw something that in all his days of hunting he prayed he'd never see. A gigantic grizzly bear stood on its hind legs and was walking toward them. It swatted at the air in front of it with massive claws, its large teeth glistening in the light. Dean knew if they ran the bear would get down on all fours and easily outrun them. He slowly raised his gun and stood protectively in front of the couple.

"Back away toward the river slowly…Do not run unless I tell you to. But if I tell you to run…then run as fast as you can and get in the river, don't look back."

Dean knew grizzlies could swim but he hoped maybe the bear had just eaten and wasn't hungry enough to want to swim after its food.

He slowly walked away from the couple trying to keep the bear's attention on him.

"Hey you big son of a bitch….you want some of this you come and get it."

It worked for awhile, the bear turned toward Dean and away from the couple. But when the girl suddenly panicked and began to run the bear got down on all fours and started running after her.

"Run! Get in the river!" Dean shouted as he fired at the bear. He knew as big as the bear was he'd more then likely only wound it and not kill it, and a wounded bear was far more deadly then an uninjured one.

Mike and Andrea made it to the river and jumped in. The bear started into the water after them but then turned around and headed back toward Dean. Dean did the only thing he could think of to do; he too jumped into the river.

The current carried them down river but the bear ran alongside the river having little difficulty keeping up with them.

"Try to stay in the middle of the river!" Dean shouted over to the terrified couple. He hoped by staying in the middle of the river the bear would soon tire and give up the chase. But even as he said it he could feel the current pushing them closer and closer towards the bear.

Dean had protected people all his life and he wasn't about to stop now. He swam to the side of the couple making sure he would be the first one the bear would reach.

"I'll try to distract him….Just stay in the river, hopefully the current will take you far enough away that he won't bother following."

When he got close to the river bank he quickly crawled out before the bear could reach him and ran into a clearing. He watched as the bear turned in his direction and as the couple continued down the river. It had worked; the couple at least for now was safe but now the bear's full attention was now on him. He knew his only hope was to double back and once more try to reach the river. He headed into the woods hoping the trees would give him at least a little protection from the bear. His plan was to get into the woods and let the bear follow him. Then when he was certain the couple was far enough down river he'd head back to the river. He hoped the bear would grow tired of the chase and back off. But he had a bad feeling he was going to become exhausted before the bear tired out.

He could hear the bear crashing through the woods behind him and knew it wasn't far behind. After leading the bear into the woods for a few minutes he turned and headed back for the river. He had just reached the edge of the woods and could see the river up ahead when he suddenly felt the bear swipe at his backpack with its huge claw. The creature connected with his backpack and picked him up and threw him through the air. He hit the ground hard and lay on his back trying to catch his breath as he watched the bear once more get on its hind legs and head toward him. He tried to get up but the leg he had injured in the river earlier protested and he collapsed back to the ground. He aimed his gun at the huge creature's head. He knew he had to make the shot count or he was dead. He had heard of bears being shot in the head before and the bullet didn't even seem to faze them only made them angrier, but he had no choice. He fired….but there was only silence. He frantically hit the bottom of his gun with the palm of his hand; his gun had never misfired before. He tried again with the same result. He lay on his back and watched in horror as the bear, which was now standing over him, opened its mouth and roared.

TBC


	12. Chapter 12

I appreciate the reviews, thanks.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter twelve

Dean kept his eyes on the bear and waited for the agony to come. He knew if he tried to run the bear would be on him in a second. He had never backed down from anything before and he wasn't about to now. If he was going to die he'd look at it head on.

When the bear didn't attack immediately Dean realized that its attention was drawn to something behind it. The bear slowly turned and Dean got a glimpse of what it was looking at ……Sam. Dean was both relieved and horrified to see his brother standing there, relieved that he was alive and horrified that he was about to die right in front of him.

"Sammy…get out of here." Dean kept his voice soft not wanting to startle the bear into attacking. Sam looked like he had been to hell and back. He could barely stand, but he did, his gun trained on the bear. The bear, still on its hind legs, began walking toward him. "Sam get out of here!" Dean shouted as he rolled to his feet and away from the bear.

Sam shut his eyes for a second as a wave of dizziness over took him and he fell to his knees. Dean could see a steady stream of blood running down from behind the bandage on his brother's head.

Even though Sam felt like he was about to pass out he managed to keep his gun trained on the bear.

"Come on….just a little closer." He whispered as the bear slowly walked toward him. He knew he had to kill it or both he and his brother were as good as dead. 

Dean stood to the side watching everything. He knew if he tried to distract the bear his brother would lose his shot. He raised his own gun hoping that by some miracle it might now work. He waited till Sam fired three quick shots then he emptied his own gun, which now worked, into the bear. He watched as the bullets plowed into the back of the bear's head right after Sam's bullets plowed into the front of it. The bear managed to stagger a few feet then fell dead, its body barely missing Sam. Dean limped over to his brother who was still down on his knees.

"Damn it's good to see you Sammy. I thought you might be dead." He said as he fell to his knees next to his brother.

Sam gave Dean a small smile, glad to be reunited with him.

"I heard the shots….You okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine…just twisted my leg a little back at the river. How 'bout you?" Dean asked as he gently removed the bandage from Sam's head. He winced when he saw the deep cut and lump under the bandage. "Looks like you took quite a hit." He said as he opened his backpack and took out the first aide kit.

"Yeah it feels like I got a marching band playing in my head." Sam winced in pain as Dean began dabbing at the cut with a gauze pad. "Ouch…take it easy." He reached toward the cut but Dean gently pulled his hand away.

"Don't touch it. You got a really nasty cut Sam and I'm going to need to stitch it up."

"Try not to leave a scar." Sam said as he tilted his head back allowing Dean to work on him.

"Why not…it'll give you something to tell the ladies about." Dean smiled as he tried his best to clean the wound. "Ladies love battle scars." Dean tried to hide his worry; the cut was deep and wouldn't stop bleeding. He knew his brother might also have a concussion and should be in the hospital but there was no way to call for help so he'd have to do the best he could for him. "Sam I found Andy."

"You did?" Sam turned his head toward his brother.

"Yeah. … Damn it Sammy hold still!" As gently as he could Dean began stitching up Sam's cut. "He's dead."

"What about the bow."

"He didn't have it on him."

"Oh great, now what do we do?"

"He was with two other people so I guess the only thing we can do is have them show us the direction they came from. Maybe Andy hid the bow on the way and we can back track him and find it."

"Where are they?"

Dean looked in the direction of the river.

"Probably half way out of the valley by now." He looked at Sam and smiled. "I left them in the river." Dean said as he began putting the kit away.

"You done?" Sam asked after Dean put a fresh bandage over the wound, when Dean nodded Sam tried to stand up. "We better go find them."

When Sam began to sway uneasily on his feet Dean quickly stood up and grabbed him.

"Easy….take it easy. Don't worry we'll find them." He put Sam's arm over his shoulder then began to lead him back to the river. "You know Sam if we can't find that bow we're basically screwed."

"Yeah I know."

TBC


	13. Chapter 13

I appreciate the reviews, thanks.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter thirteen

They walked to the river then began following it as it flowed through the valley. Both brothers walked silently each trying to deal with their own pain. Sam's head was pounding and the cut bled even through the stitches and pad. Dean limped next to his brother, wincing each time he took a step. When they had walked for an hour and hadn't run into the couple they began to get worried.

"Maybe something got them." Sam said as he looked down the river.

"Maybe."

Sam walked over to a rock and sat down, it was obvious to Dean he was exhausted.

"How are we going to back track him if we can't find the other two? They're the only ones who know where they had been."

"I don't know, all I know is that the kid didn't have the bow on him so he must have ditched it somewhere between where he was killed and the burial ground."

"That's a hell of a lot of ground to cover."

"Yeah I know." Dean knew it would be almost impossible to recover the bow without knowing where Andy had been before he was killed.

Sam shut his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"You okay?" Dean asked.

"Yeah….just a headache."

"Sam, you really took a beating in the river. Maybe we should just forget about all this and get you to a hospital, you could have a concussion."

"We can't just stop looking. Who knows how many more people might die."

"Yeah, including us."

Sam looked over at Dean, he knew he was right, without the bow there was nothing they could do and that they too could end up dead.

It was then Mike and Andrea walked out of the woods.

"Boy we're glad to see you guys." Mike said relieved that he and Andrea were no longer alone.

"I told you two to stay in the river."

"We saw that bear go after you so we stayed in the river for awhile then got out and hid in the woods." Andrea explained.

"You two okay?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, just scared." Andrea gave a nervous laugh then looked over at Sam. "I see you found your brother." She said to Dean.

"Yeah….or I should say he found me." 

"We thought maybe this curse you told us about got you both." Mike said.

"No….at least not yet." Dean gave a little smile then looked up at the darkening sky. "We better go see if we can find cover somewhere for the night. Tomorrow we'll back track your steps and see if we can find out where your friend hid the bow."

**Later that night**

They found a small clearing in the woods and set up camp. Within a few hours Mike and Andrea crawled off to sleep by the fire while Dean and Sam kept watch. Sam looked like he was ready to pass out but Dean kept him talking. He knew if Sam did have a concussion the best thing to do was keep him awake for twenty four hours or he could lapse into a coma.

"Sam you know if we don't find the bow we're screwed." Dean said as he threw more sticks onto the fire.

"Yeah….but what are we going to do?"

"I don't know. The only other thing that will end this is a human sacrifice…. and I don't see anyone standing in line waiting to become one."

"So we just leave?"

"What else can we do Sam?"

"I don't know….maybe we can reason with the spirits."

"Reason with them? How?"

"Maybe we could go to the burial ground and let them know how sorry we are that their cemetery was desecrated, and that we tried to help."

"You think they'd listen to us? I doubt it."

"Maybe, maybe they would."

"Sam these Indians were massacred by the white man. We took their land…their lives….They hate us for coming here….They're not about to listen to us."

"Shhhh." Sam held up his hand.

"What?" Dean looked out into the dark woods.

"Something's out there."

TBC


	14. Chapter 14

Thanks for the reviews.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter fourteen

The brothers stood still for about a minute listening to the sound of the woods. When nothing happened Dean looked over at Sam.

"I don't hear anything unusual."

Sam tilted his head slightly trying to see if he could hear the sound he had heard earlier. At first he didn't, then he nodded and looked over at Dean. 

"There." He pointed toward the woods. "Do you hear that?"

Dean could hear a faint squeaking sound coming from out of the woods. But before he could tell Sam he now heard it, hundred of bats flew out of the woods and toward the campsite.

"Mike! Andrea! Zip up your sleeping bags and stay inside!" Dean shouted over to the sleeping couple.

They didn't have to be told twice. Hearing Dean's warning they crawled deep into the bags and zipped them shut. 

Dean and Sam both reached down and picked a burning branch out of the fire and began waving it over their heads trying to ward off the bats. At first it worked and the bats flew off in every direction. But soon they regrouped and began attacking any exposed skin they could find.

Dean pulled one bat off his neck and tossed it into the fire only to have a second bat replace it. Sam also was fighting a losing battle. After about ten minutes of continuous attacks the bats finally flew back into the woods.

Both brothers stood protectively in front of the couple, blood dripping from their numerous wounds.

"You okay Sammy?" Dean asked as he held a lit branch high in the air.

"Yeah, you?"

"I'm fine." Dean looked toward the closed sleeping bags. "It's okay, you can come out not."

Mike and Andrea crawled out of the bags and ran over to Dean and Sam.

"Oh my God they really did a number on you two." Mike said as he looked the brothers over.

"What about rabies?" Andrea asked her eyes wide with fear. "Bats have rabies."

"Not every bat carries rabies." Sam said trying to keep the fear out of his voice. He too was thinking the same thing.

Dean looked at the couple. 

"You two stay here, and stay by the fire. We're going down to the river to wash up; we'll only be a few minutes. If you see or hear anything, yell."

"Oh don't worry, we will." Andrea said as she grabbed Mike's arm and pulled him close.

Dean grabbed the first aide kit then he and Sam headed for the river. Once there they stripped off their clothes and grabbed a bar of antibiotic soap. They washed themselves thoroughly paying special attention to the areas where they had been bitten. They then dried off and rubbed antibiotic cream over the bites.

"You know this isn't going to help at all if those bats really did have rabies." Sam said as he started to get dressed.

"I know, but let's just hope they didn't." Dean looked over at his brother and was surprised to see him trying not to laugh

"What's so funny?" Dean couldn't imagine what Sam could find so funny.

"Us."

"Us?"

"Yeah us. We're suppose to be saving these people and look at us. We're standing here half naked, and covered in blood….We look like a couple of amateurs. We're bit to hell, you can barely walk, and I …." He reached his hand up to his bandaged head. "Well let's just say I've seen better days…. Some heroes huh? Those two kids probably think they'd be better off without us."

Dean smiled back at Sam.

"Yeah we do look like idiots don't we?" Dean agreed, instead of saving the couple they had them cowering in their sleeping bags. Plus he could barely walk and Sam might have a concussion. "We're not exactly instilling confidence in them are we?"

"Well we're all they have for the moment." Sam looked at Dean and turned serious. "We got to find that bow Dean and get it back to the burial ground or I have a feeling none of us will be walking out of these woods alive."

TBC


	15. Chapter 15

Thanks for the reviews. I'll post the next chapter when I get back from vacation next Tuesday. For those of you on spring or Easter break …. Have a good one!

**Burial Ground**

Chapter fifteen

**The next morning**

Nothing else happened during the night and they left the campsite at first light. Both brothers were exhausted from staying awake all night keeping watch. Normally they would have taken turns but Dean knew he had to stay awake to keep Sam awake. If Sam did have a concussion, falling asleep for even a few minutes could cause him to fall into a coma from which he might never awake. But Dean was certain that the critical time period had passed and that tonight they could each catch a little sleep while the other kept watch, that's was if they survived the coming day.

They spent most of the day slowly back tracking Andy's trail. Mike and Andrea had been together with Andy up until his death and remembered most of the trails they had followed. Along the way Sam and Dean looked for any sign of the bow. They turned over rocks and also looked for signs of anything being buried. So far they had no luck.

"Did Andy leave you at any point?" Dean asked.

"Only once or twice when he had to take a leak." Mike said.

"How far off did he go?"

"Only a few feet off the trail, after what happened to Tim and Rob we stuck pretty close together."

Sam looked over at Dean and shook his head.

"It could be anywhere. It's like looking for a needle in a haystack."

"Yeah." Dean knew it would be next to impossible to find it, but they had to try. He knew if they didn't more people would die, including maybe even themselves.

They had walked another mile when Sam suddenly grabbed Dean's arm and nodded toward the sky. The western part of the sky had turned a dark threatening black.

"We better find shelter." Sam said trying to keep his voice calm, he knew the weather could be part of the curse and he didn't want to frighten the couple anymore then they already were. 

Dean looked at the couple.

"When you came through this way before did you see any cabin or shed….anything that we could use as a shelter?"

Andrea looked at Mike.

"Isn't there an old cabin about half a mile or so from here?" She pointed to an odd rock formation. "I remember passing it about half an hour before we passed this rock."

"Yeah…." Mike looked at the brothers. "…she's right. It isn't much but it'll get us out of the storm."

"We better hurry." Sam said as he glanced at the sky and could see the storm quickly approaching.

They hurried toward the cabin as the sky grew darker and darker. Soon the storm was right above them. Hail, strong winds, and rain began pounding down on them. They held their backpacks over their heads trying to protect themselves from the painful hail. Finally they reached the cabin and hurried inside. Once everyone was inside Dean quickly shut the shutters and bolted the door which kept blowing open. The sound of the hail pounding the roof was deafening.

"Everyone okay?" He shouted. He could see red welts on their face and hands where the hail had hit them. He was sure he looked as bad as they did.

"Yeah, we're fine." Mike said as he checked out Andrea's face.

"Sam…you okay?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, how 'bout yourself?"

"I'm fine." Dean looked around the dark cabin. "Let's see if we can find some candles."

They all looked around the cabin and finally found some used candles in an old crate on the floor. Dean lit them and put them around the room.

"We might as well make ourselves comfortable; we'll probably be spending the night here." 

Sam looked at the couple.

"You said you passed the cabin before…you didn't enter it?"

"No, we just walked by." Mike said but Andrea suddenly grabbed his arm as she remembered something.

"Yeah we walked by….but Andy went inside; he wanted to check out the cabin. He thought maybe he could find some supplies that someone might have left behind and that we could use."

"That's right, he did….Maybe he hid the bow here!" Mike looked back and forth between Dean and Sam.

"Let's hope so." Sam hoped it was true. If they found it maybe they could end this thing before anyone else got hurt.

Dean walked over to a window and looked out through the cracks in the shutter. He then turned toward the others.

"Why don't you three look around in here and see if you can find it. I'll be right back." Dean headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" Sam grabbed Dean's arm.

"There's a stack of firewood a few feet from the cabin and we could use some for tonight if it gets cold." Dean continued toward the door.

"Why don't you wait till the storm dies down?" Sam didn't like the idea of his brother going out into the storm alone. Even though the stack of firewood was only a few feet away he had seen enough to know that anything could happen.

"The storm could last for hours."

"Well then I'll go with you."

"Sam I'll be fine. … You keep an eye on them and try to find that bow." Dean quickly opened the door and slipped outside before Sam could argue with him.

Using the porch roof as shelter from the hail Dean ran back and forth from the pile of wood to the porch. He had made three quick trips with no problem, but on his forth trip he heard a low growl when he reached the firewood. He slowly backed up and looked up. Standing on top of the pile of wood stood a lone wolf.

TBC


	16. Chapter 16

Burial Ground

Thanks for the reviews.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter sixteen

Sam, who had been watching his brother through the window, quickly grabbed his gun and ran outside. But when he got there the wolf was gone.

"Where'd it go?" Sam asked Dean as he kept the weapon pointed toward the wood pile.

"I don't know. It was there….and then it wasn't."

Sam glanced over at the firewood on the porch.

"You got enough wood….let's get back inside before it comes back."

Sam kept his gun trained on the wood pile as Dean carried the wood inside. Once his brother was finished bringing in the wood and was safe inside Sam backed up toward the door then quickly stepped inside and bolted it.

"I wonder why it didn't attack?" Sam asked as he peeked out through the shutter.

"I don't know. Maybe you scared it away when you came out."

"Or maybe it took off to get its pack."

The brothers turned toward the couple who was staring at them wide eyed with fear as they listened to their conversation.

"There's a wolf pack out there?" Andrea asked as she huddled closer to Mike.

"No, not a pack….just a single wolf." Dean tried to reassure her, but he knew wolves almost always traveled in packs and there was no doubt in his mind one was out there close by. "But just in case put whatever furniture you can find against the windows and door." Dean told them as he threw some of the wood into the fireplace and soon had a roaring fire going. "We should be safe for the night as long as we stay inside."

"While we're stuck in here we might as well tear this place apart and look for that piece of bow." Sam said as he looked through some old cabinets then pushed them against the windows when he was certain the bow wasn't hidden in them.

"What if we don't find it?" Mike asked as he too began looking around.

Sam glanced over at Dean not sure what to tell him.

"If we don't find it, tomorrow we'll head back to the ranger's station." Dean told the couple. He knew it was the only thing they could do, they had to get the couple to safety, but first he'd have Mike trace his and Andrea's trail on their map at least what he could remember of it. Then once the couple was safe he and Sam would return and search the area and hopefully find the missing bow.

"What about this so called curse you told us about? What happens if we leave before we find the bow?"

"Oh the curse is very real, don't doubt that. Four of your friends already died because of it."

"Well then what will happen if we can't find the bow?"

"More then likely more people will die."

"And there's no way to stop it?"

"None that we can use."

"So we just leave?"

"There's nothing else we can do. If we had the bow we could take it back to the burial ground and that should end the curse, but without it we're screwed." When he saw the look on Mike's face he added. "Oh don't worry, once you two are safe my brother and I will keep looking for it…it's what we do."

"It's what you do?" Mike couldn't believe someone actually did this for a living.

"Yeah…" Dean gave a little smile. "Sort of like the family business."

"Well you must have a weird family then." Mike said as he turned away and went back to looking for the bow.

"Yeah…yeah I guess we do." Dean glanced over at Sam. _But it's all we know_ he thought to himself sadly. He had always hoped Sam could live a normal life, but he had dragged him back into the hunting business when their dad went missing. But by doing that he had inadvertently caused Jessica's death. Now most of the people the brothers had cared about were dead, their mom, Jessica, and now even their dad….and soon he would be too. He looked at Sam then quickly turned away as his eyes filled up with tears. He knew he had hurt his brother deeply by making the deal to bring him back from the dead, but he knew he couldn't live without him. Now instead his brother would be forced to live without him. But the question that bothered Dean the most was …what would happen to Sam once he was gone? He shook his head slightly trying to get the question out of his mind. He couldn't worry about that right now. Right now surviving the night was the only thing that mattered.

TBC


	17. Chapter 17

Burial Ground

I appreciate the reviews, I'm glad you still like the story.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter seventeen

**1:30 AM**

All four of them had trouble falling asleep but finally one by one they all drifted off to a restless sleep. Dean and Sam both slept in chairs by the door, their guns lying in their laps. At 1:30 something woke Sam up and he sat upright in his chair. He wasn't sure what woke him so he looked around the cabin but still couldn't see anything wrong. He walked over to the window and looked out. Standing outside was a large white wolf, the same one he had seen standing by the wood pile. In the woods he could see the gleaming eyes of the pack, the moonlight causing their eyes to glow yellow.

Sam walked over to Dean and gently woke him up.

"They're back." Sam nodded toward the window.

Dean got up quietly not wanting to wake the sleeping couple and looked out through the shutters.

"Looks like he brought the pack with him this time."

"Yeah, I guess he wants to make sure none of us make it out of here…..What do you think we should do?"

"Well we can't do anything tonight. Even if we kill the leader the others will just take off and regroup later and there's no way I want to take on a pack of wolves at night. We might as well try to get some rest, then in the morning we'll try to get them back to the ranger's station."

The brothers made sure their guns were fully loaded then sat back down. Throughout the night they took turns keeping watch.

**4:30 AM**

Sam had been keeping watch for the last half hour when he stood up to stretch…it was then he smelled the smoke. He looked around the cabin but couldn't see any signs of a fire.

"Dean wake up." He grabbed his brother by the shoulder and shook him.

"What?" Dean jumped up startled from his sleep.

"Something's burning."

Together they looked around the cabin and finally saw an orange flickering light coming through the cracks in the ceiling.

"They're trying to lure us outside." Dean knew the wolves could be waiting right outside the door.

"I don't think we have a choice, if that roof caves in we're screwed."

"There's an old well outside….maybe there's still some water in it." Dean walked over to the couple and woke them up. "Get them out of here." He told Sam as he looked around for something he could use as a bucket.

Sam took the couple outside, then with his gun in front of him he stood protectively in front of them while Dean grabbed two old buckets from the back room. Dean then checked the well and was glad to see that it hadn't dried up and still had water in it. He rigged the one bucket up to the frayed rope at the well and lowered it into the well then brought it up and filled the other one with it.

"Keep the water coming." He told Sam and Mike as he climbed up on the roof and dumped the contents onto the fire. Each time he handed the bucket to one of the others to fill he scanned the area keeping an eye out for the wolf pack. He knew he and his brother were expert marksmen and could easily take out a wolf with each bullet but he also knew there were too many of them and they wouldn't have time to reload….If the wolves attacked now while they had no protection they all would more then likely be killed. Within a few minutes Dean had the fire out and climbed back down.

"Let's get them back inside." He told Sam when he reached the bottom.

But just then a smoldering piece of wood dropped from the roof and brushed against Dean's jacket. The arm of his jacket immediately went up in flames.

"Dean!" Sam shouted as he grabbed an old rug off the firewood pile and smothered the flames with it. He gave a little yelp of pain when he felt something sharp slice into his arm. Once he was sure Dean was okay he checked his arm and could see two pinholes near the inside of his elbow. He and Dean both turned toward the woodpile and watched in horror as a large rattlesnake crawled back into it.

TBC


	18. Chapter 18

Burial Ground

I appreciate they reviews, thanks.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter eighteen

"Damn it!" Dean swore as he grabbed Sam's arm. "That son of bitch must have been hiding in the rug." He said as he took out his knife and made a quick cut across the puncture marks. He then began sucking out the venom and spitting it out.

"Dean don't!" Sam tried to pull his arm away but Dean held on tight as he continued trying to get the venom out of his brother's arm. "We have a snake bite kit, use that." Sam didn't want to take the chance that any of the poison would get into his brother's system.

"I don't have time; I've got to get as much poison out as soon I can." Dean looked over at the couple. "Everybody get back inside." He ordered them as he led Sam back into the cabin as he continued sucking the poison out of his arm.. He led Sam over to the only cot in the room and made him lie down. He then took off his shirt and ripped two long strips from it. He tied one above and one below the bite. He then put a low cabinet next to the cot.

"Try to keep your arm lower then your heart." He said as he sucked one last mouthful of blood out then put Sam's arm on the cabinet.

He walked over to his backpack and took out the first aide kit then hurried back to his brother and gave him a shot.

"How do you feel?" He asked Sam as he looked down at him.

"Okay." Sam lied when he saw the worry in Dean's eyes. He was starting to feel a little nauseous and weak and the site of the bite was already beginning to discolor and swell.

"Damn it Sammy don't lie to me." Dean could read his brother like a book. He knew when he was lying.

Mike and Andrea walked over and stood next to Dean.

"What are we going to do now?" Mike asked.

"We'll have to stay here a few days till my brother can travel. I think I got most of the venom out of him and the shot should help but…."

"But what?"

Dean walked away from Sam not wanting to say in front of Sam what the brother's both already knew, Mike followed him over to the window.

"My brother needs to get to a hospital and get checked out…I think I got most of the poison out but even the tiniest bit of venom could paralyze his respiratory system and kill him."

"Then why are we staying here. Let's get him to the ranger's station."

"He needs to rest. Any exertion will only cause his heart to beat harder and spread the venom faster. We'll stay here a day or two and let him rest, then we'll take off." Dean knew his brother's condition could worsen and wanted to take off for the ranger's station on his own and bring back help, but he didn't want to leave Sam behind. If he was killed before he reached the station what would happen to his brother? He couldn't trust the couple to take care of him. He knew if Sam's condition got worse he'd be of little help to them so there would be no reason for them to stay and take care of him. The couple was scared and could panic and bolt at any time leaving his brother alone. Maybe, just maybe he had gotten the venom out of Sam's arm and in a few days he should be okay. Then together they'd all make it out of the woods and to safety.

Mike and Andrea wandered off to the corner of the cabin to talk as Dean walked back over to Sam and checked his arm. Dean winced when he saw that Sam's arm was already purple and swollen.

"It's bad isn't it?" Sam asked.

"You just need to rest Sam and it'll be fine." Dean said trying to convince himself more then his brother.

"Don't lie to me Dean. … You need to get these people out of here. You can't hang around here waiting for me to get better."

"A day or two isn't going to make much of a difference Sam. When you're up to traveling we'll leave."

"No…We were going to leave today and I think you still should. Once you get them to safety you can bring someone back for me."

"No way Sam…I'm not leaving you here to…"

"To do what Dean? Die? You did what you could for me …. staying here with me isn't going to change anything. If the venom kills me it's going to kill me whether you're here or not so I want you to go…..I want you to get these people out of here. There's nothing we can do anymore. Andy's dead…..and we searched everywhere we could think of for the piece of the bow, we're not going to find it." Sam looked up at Dean and gave him a small smile. "We can't win them all you know. Isn't that what you always tell me?"

"Well we're winning this one Sam. We're all getting out of this together." Dean wasn't about to think otherwise. There was no way he was going to lose his brother, not again.

Sam knew it was hopeless to argue with his brother. Once Dean had his mind set it would be almost impossible to change it. But even though Dean had sucked most of the poison out of his system he could still feel the effects of the bite, his eye sight was beginning to get blurry and the pain in his arm was increasing. He knew he probably wouldn't be walking away from this one.

TBC


	19. Chapter 19

Burial Ground

Thanks for the reviews.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter nineteen

They spent the rest of the day in the cabin only venturing out to get water from the well when they ran out. It was obvious to everyone that Sam's condition was slowly deteriorating. He lay on the cot covered in sweat, his heartbeat racing, his head rolling back and forth as his body tried to fight the fever. Ever so often Dean would gently raise Sam's head to give him a sip of water, but most of the time he either couldn't swallow it or ended up throwing it up. Dean could tell that his brother was growing weaker and weaker by the hour. Most of the time Sam was barely conscious, moaning in pain, the rest of the time he begged Dean to leave with the couple.

"I'm not going anywhere Sam."

"What are you going to do Dean….wait till my body's cold?"

"I don't want to hear this shit from you. You're going to be fine…you're not going to die." Dean told Sam as he wiped his forehead with a cool damp cloth.

"Dean please…..please leave…." Sam weakly reached up and pushed Dean's hand away. "I don't want to be the reason anyone else dies…Please take them…and get out of here"

"Sam, is we leave now or later it really doesn't make much difference. Without the artifact we're still screwed."

"There's not much food left….and the longer you wait the weaker everyone will be….You don't know what you might run into out there…you're going to need your strength."

Dean knew Sam was right about the food. The couple had lost their supply on the trail and Dean was now sharing the little bit he and Sam had packed with four people instead of two, he knew it wouldn't last long.

Mike walked over.

"Your brother's right." He said to Dean. "Once the food is gone we have nothing. I think we should take our chances out there…..We can send help back for him once we get to the ranger's station."

"I'm not leaving my brother." Dean said softly.

"Look at him!" Mike pointed toward Sam. "He's getting worse. He probably won't make it till morning."

"I told you I'm not leaving my brother!" Dean spun around glaring at Mike. "If you want to go, be my guest." He waved his hand toward the door. "You can leave anytime you want."

"You know we can't make it without you….Look I'm sorry about your brother, I really am, but I don't think he's going to make it."

"He'll make it." Dean said trying to convince himself as much as Mike.

Mike shook his head and walked back over to Andrea.

**Later – early morning**

Dean spent the rest of the night sponging cool water over Sam's fevered body. He couldn't understand why his brother was getting worse instead of better. He knew he had sucked most of the poison out of Sam's body and with the antivenin shot he had given him his brother should be improving, but he wasn't. Why? And then it came to him….the curse. The Indian curse wanted to claim another victim. No matter what he did….Sam was going to die.

"You're not getting him." Dean said as he stood up and grabbed his gun then headed toward the door.

"Where are you going?" Mike asked as both he and Andrea stood up.

"Just take care of my brother." He told them as he opened the door. "Stay inside till tomorrow then head for the ranger's station."

"Dean…Dean…" Sam called out weakly his face glistening with sweat. "Where….where are you going?"

"Everything's going to be alright Sam. It will all be over soon." He blinked back tears as he took one last look at his brother then left. He knew of only one way to end the curse….a human sacrifice.

TBC


	20. Chapter 20

Burial Ground

I appreciate the reviews, thanks.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter twenty

Once outside Dean checked his map and started to head in the direction of the burial ground. There was no way he was going to watch his brother die again, not if he could help it. He knew he was going to die anyway in a few months so he figured he'd just be going to Hell a few months earlier then expected, that's all. But he wasn't looking forward to it, in fact he was downright terrified of it, but if his brother would live it would be worth it.

**Inside the cabin**

"Dean!...Dean!..." Even in his feverish state Sam knew what was happening. His brother was going to sacrifice himself so they could live. He looked over at Mike and Andrea who stood looking out through the cracks in the shutters as Dean walked away. "You got to stop him!" Sam begged the couple. "Please…you got to stop him…"

"He's deserting us…he's leaving us here to die…." Mike said as he put his arm around Andrea.

"No….no….he's going to kill himself so you can live…." Sam tried to explain as he finally managed to pull himself up off the bed. "The curse will end with a human sacrifice ….. Please…you gotta stop him…you can't let him do this." Sam said as he made his way toward the door.

He threw the door open and leaned against the frame, too weak to walk any further.

"Dean!...Don't do it!...Please just come back…We'll figure something out….."

Dean heard his brother and turned around.

"It'll be okay Sammy just go back inside."

"No Dean please!" Sam took a few more steps but the exertion was too much for him and he collapsed on the porch.

Dean ran back to his brother and knelt down beside him.

"Sammy it's the only way." Dean tried to explain to his brother. "We're all going to die if I don't do this."

"Please Dean…please…." Sam was terrified he knew this might be the last time he saw his brother. "Just take them and leave….I'll wait here…I'll be fine…You don't have to do this…."

"Sam it's too dangerous to take them through the woods" He tried to explain. "Once it's over with…they'll be fine." He reassured his brother. "And I'm not about to take them and leave you here to die alone." His heart broke as he looked into his brother's tear filled eyes. "Sam…I'm going to be gone in a few months anyway….at least this way three people will live."

Dean helped Sam up and forced him back into the cabin. He could feel the heat radiating off of his brother's body and knew he had to get going before he got any worse. He helped Sam back to the bed then looked over at Mike. "Keep my brother here and don't let him follow me." He then looked over at Andrea. "Don't worry. Everything will be over with by morning; you'll be able to leave by then." He reassured her.

"Dean please….." Sam continued pleading with his brother as he struggled with Mike who was trying to hold him down. "Don't do this….just take them and leave….You don't have to do this…."

"Yes I do Sam…it's the only way." Dean headed toward the door and took one last glance back at his brother. "Take care Sam." He left quickly not wanting his brother to see the tears that filled his eyes. The tears weren't for him but for Sam. He knew his leaving would be hard on his brother but it had to be done, it was the only sure way to end the Indian curse. He prayed Sam would be okay without him. Maybe Sam could hook up with Bobby and they could hunt together. Sure that's what would happen….Bobby could keep an eye on his brother and keep him safe since he wouldn't be around to. He blinked back tears as he heard Sam calling for him inside the cabin.

"Noooo! Dean come back!" Sam screamed as he struggled to get up … he had to get to his brother but in his weaken state he was no match for Mike who had no trouble holding him down. "Let go of me!" He shouted as he fought with Mike. Tears ran down his face as he pleaded one last time. "Dean!...Dean please don't do this!"

TBC


	21. Chapter 21

Burial Ground

Thanks for the reviews.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter twenty one

"Please you got to stop him!" Sam pleased with Mike. "He's going to kill himself….you got to stop him!"

"Let him." Mike said as he peeked out through the shutters and watched Dean head off into the woods.

"What?" Sam looked at Mike is disbelief….Had he heard him wrong?

"Let him die. It'll be one less person we have to get rid of."

"What… what are you talking about?" Sam couldn't believe what he was hearing.

Mike walked over to Andrea's backpack and reached inside. He pulled out the broken piece of the bow and examined it to make sure it hadn't been damaged. He then placed it back in Andrea's backpack.

"You had it all along? Even after my brother told you about the curse you had it and didn't tell us?"

Andrea walked over and stood at Sam's bed.

"That piece of bow is going to make us thousands. It's in remarkable shape for having been lying on that burial ground all these years. Collectors will pay a lot for it."

"You can't do this…You got to take it back to the grave or more people are going to die."

"Your brother's death will end the curse. Once he's dead the curse will be lifted and we can get out of here." She smiled over at Mike. "We're going to be rich baby."

Mike looked at his watch.

"I figure it should take your brother roughly two hours to get to the burial ground. Then we'll give him another hour till he gets the guts to blow himself away." He looked at Sam and smiled. "But he will…..if he thinks it will save his brother."

"You bastard! You can't just let my brother die!" Sam tried to get off the bed he had to tell Dean what was going on, but Mike delivered a vicious blow to his face which in his weakened conditioned knocked him back to the bed.

"Oh yeah I can."

"What about him?" Andrea asked Mike as she took a knife out of her backpack.

"We'll leave him here. He's too sick to get out of here by himself." He looked at Andrea and smiled. "Both of them will be dead and there will be no one left to tell anyone what happened."

"I can finish him off right now." She smiled as she walked toward Sam the knife tightly gripped in her hand.

"No." Mike grabbed her arm and stopped her.

"Why not?"

"We don't want any questions to be asked when they find the bodies. They'll figure that he died from the snake bite and that that his brother was so distraught that he killed himself."

"You bastards you knew about this curse all along didn't you? And you just watched your friends die without trying to stop it?"

"Hey we all make sacrifices during our lives don't we?" Andrea said smiling. "Besides they were all expendable and now it's just Mike and me. We can split the money we get for the bow two ways instead of six." Without warning Andrea suddenly spun around and plunged the knife deep into Mike's stomach. He looked up at her in shock and pain as he dropped to his knees then collapsed to the floor in a growing pool of blood. Andrea looked over at Sam and smiled. "And now there's just one."

**In the woods**

Dean hurried through the woods; nothing was going to stop him. He knew the only way to be sure Sam and the couple would live was to sacrifice himself on the burial ground. He knew the wolf pack was following him, he had caught a glimpse of them through the trees. He could only hope that they wouldn't attack and that he'd be able to accomplish his mission without any further distractions, but he kept his gun in his hand just in case.

TBC


	22. Chapter 22

Burial Ground

Thanks for the reviews. Hope you're not disappointed with the rest of the story.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter twenty two

Sam leaned back on the bed as he watched Andrea, his hand slowly inching toward his gun which lay on the table next to him.

"So you had it all along. Andrea….or should I say Andie?….That's what your friend was saying wasn't it, that Andie had the bow not Andy. Why didn't we think of that?" Sam shook his head he couldn't believe that neither he nor Dean had realized that Andie was a nickname for Andrea.

"Oh you're a clever one aren't you?" Andrea said as she waved the knife in front of him. "But not as clever as me. Now you're the only thing that stands between me and the money. But like Mike said….the snake venom should kill you so I don't have to. So let's see…."She thought for a few seconds on how she would explain what had happened if she was asked. "Our friends were all killed in freak accidents or by the wild animals that inhabit these woods. And poor Mike…" She looked down at the body. "Why I guess you were so delirious that you stabbed him, then you died from the snake bite. Your poor brother was heartbroken and walked off into the woods and stumbled upon the burial site where he took his own life." She smiled at Sam. "Yeah …I think that will work."

"You let your friends die knowing you could have prevented their deaths…." Sam shook his head; he couldn't believe anyone could be that cruel. "What kind of bitch are you?"

"A rich bitch." She said smiling. "You are a cute one aren't you?...Too bad you have to die." Andrea put the knife under Sam's chin and pushed in slightly. A trickle of blood ran down his neck.

Sam's hand slowly inched closer to his gun but Andrea suddenly brought the knife down and caught his hand between his thumb and forefinger pinning his hand to the bed. He winced in pain as Andrea reached over and took his gun.

"Bad boy." She said as she pulled the knife out then sliced him across the arm for no reason other then to cause him pain. It was obvious she was enjoying playing with him. "Nothing's hotter then an injured handsome man." She smiled as she sliced him again. He grabbed his arm and winced in pain as he tried to back away from her. If he could just grab her arm he knew even in his weakened state he could take her down. But she was quick and the opportunity didn't present itself.

**In the woods**

Dean watched as the wolf pack circled him slowly getting closer and closer to him. He gripped his gun tight; he figured if they attacked he'd take as many of them down as he could.

Suddenly directly in front of him the lone wolf he had seen on top of the firewood came out of the woods and stood directly in his path. He kept his gun trained on it as he watched in disbelief as it started to glow then formed the body of a man with long black hair dressed in deerskins.

"What do you want?" Dean asked as he kept the gun leveled at the apparition..

"My people have been watching you. You seek to do the honorable thing and replace the stolen bow."

"We tried but the bow is gone and we have no idea where it is."

"So you come to sacrifice yourself so that the others will live." It wasn't a question it was a statement.

"It's the only way."

"You are brave. You would make a fine warrior."

"My brother and the two people with him don't deserve to die. The man who stole your bow is dead. He has paid the price."

"We seek the bow…not death."

"I have no way of knowing where it is. We searched but can't find it."

"The thief still lives."

"The man who took the bow is dead. I saw his body."

"He is not the thief."

"Then who?"

"The thief is the white woman who even now threatens your brother with death."

"What?" Dean couldn't believe Andrea had the bow the whole time, and now she was back at the cabin with Sam who had no idea.

"Does the man with her know she has the bow?"

"Yes...But she is a wicked woman…she thinks only of herself. Death to the man and your brother mean nothing to her."

"Will you let me return to the cabin? You have my word that I will get the bow and return it to your burial ground."

"You have shown yourself to be a brave warrior who thinks of others and not himself. We will let you go in peace as long as the bow is replaced before sundown."

"It will be." Dean turned and ran back toward the cabin.

**In the cabin**

Andrea smiled as she grabbed Sam's hair and pulled his head back then placed his gun under his chin. He knew better then to reach for the weapon which had a hair trigger; he knew the slightest pressure on the trigger would send a bullet smashing through his chin and into his head. All he could do was try and talk her out of it.

"Andrea you don't have to do this." He tried to keep his voice calm not wanting to get her excited and accidentally pull the trigger. He swallowed hard; he couldn't believe his life was going to be ended by a human. And Dean…..Dean was going to die for nothing.

"Sorry honey…I was going to let the venom do its job but I need to be sure there are no witnesses. I'll make it quick." She smiled as she looked into his eyes. "Bye, bye…it was nice knowing you."

A single gunshot echoed through the woods.

**Outside the cabin**

"Oh God no!" Dean heart pounded in his chest as he ran toward the cabin.

TBC


	23. Chapter 23

Burial Ground

Well this is the last chapter. Thanks to all who took the time to review, as always I hope the ending doesn't suck too badly.

**Burial Ground**

Chapter twenty three

"I'll kill you you bitch!" Dean didn't care if she was a female or not; if she had hurt his brother she was dead.

He ran toward the cabin and didn't even bother to see if the door was unlocked, with one hard kick the door shattered into pieces. He was horrified by the sight that greeted his eyes. Sam lay on the bed covered in blood, Andrea on top of him a growing red blood stain on her back.

"Sammy!" Dean rushed to his brother and pulled Andrea off of him and tossed her onto the floor. "Sammy?" Dean ran his hands over Sam's body looking for any bullet wounds. He saw the cuts on Sam's arm but no bullet holes. "Sam where were you hit?" He asked when he couldn't find any.

"Dean…." Sam breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that his brother was okay. "I'm okay….she didn't shoot me."

Dean looked at Sam confused.

"She didn't shoot you?"

"No….Mike shot her before she could."

Dean knelt down next to Mike's body which was lying in a pool of blood; he was dead, his hand still firmly grasping his gun. He then went to Andrea and took Sam's gun out of her hand as she looked up at him.

"Help me…please help me…." She begged. "I …I don't want to die."

"Neither did your friends bitch!" Dean had no sympathy for her. She had left her friends die one by one and had almost killed his brother.

He walked back over to Sam and checked his pulse, it was racing.

"How're ya feeling?"

"Like I'm dead but too dumb to fall over." Sam gave his brother a little smile.

"You look like hell." Dean reached over and pushed Sam's sweat soaked hair out of his eyes. He was worried… Sam's breathing was labored and he was burning up, but he knew he couldn't let him rest, they had to go. "Sam….we got to leave here, we got to make it to the burial ground before sundown."

"Why sundown?"

"I'll tell you on the way."

"Dean…I don't think I can make it. Why don't you just go….do what you have to do…you can come back for me later."

"There's no way I'm leaving you here alone. We're both going …even if I have to carry you."

"What about her?" Sam looked down at Andrea.

"She stays."

"We can't just leave her Dean."

"Why not? She killed Mike and it looks like she was about to kill you."

"Yeah but she's hurt, we can't just leave her here to die."

"How 'bout if I put her out of her misery." Dean stood over to Andrea and pointed his gun at her.

"Dean!" Sam couldn't believe his brother would shoot an injured human, especially a woman.

"Sam she left four of her friends die out there, and she killed Mike. Who knows how many other people that we don't even know about have died because of this curse."

"Dean…please…"

Dean looked down at Andrea and could see her eyes starting to glaze over so he knelt down next to her and placed two fingers against her neck….the decision had been made for him…she was dead. He then went over to her backpack and took out the piece of broken bow and put it in his backpack.

"She's gone Sam." He walked back to his brother and gently pulled him off the bed then put Sam's arm around his shoulder. "We got to go." Dean knew that Sam was weak and shouldn't be moved but he wasn't about to leave him behind, not by himself.

**Later**

The walk was long with Sam growing weaker with each step. Sam knew he was holding Dean back and begged him to leave him but Dean ignored him and continued helping him toward the burial ground. Dean figured they'd either make it together or die together but at least they'd do it together. When Sam collapsed and couldn't go on any further Dean picked him up and threw him over his shoulder. His brother's weight made the going even slower. Dean could see the sun slowly going down on the horizon and he tried to quicken his pace. Sam had long ago stopped talking and even his occasional moans had grown quiet but Dean knew he couldn't stop to check on him, he had to reach the burial ground by sundown or they both were dead. Finally just as the sun began to set he saw the graveyard up ahead and slowly lowered Sam to the ground.

"Sam we made it." He told his brother as he gently stroked his face trying to get a response. When there wasn't any he began to panic. "Come on Sammy wake up, we're here." He began to shake his brother as tears filled his eyes. "Sam? Sammy!" He put his ear down next to his brother's mouth but couldn't detect any breath. "No…..Oh God no!" He began patting Sam's face. "Sammy wake up! Come on Sam you got to wake up for me!"

Tears were now streaming down his face as he left his brother and made his way over to the burial ground. He then placed the bow in a small hidden space between two rocks.

"You have your bow! Now bring my brother back!" Dean shouted at the sky, but there was no response. "I did what you asked! The bow has been returned to its rightful place!" Dean glanced over at Sam who lay as still as death. "Please! Please bring my brother back he had nothing to do with it being stolen!"

Suddenly the lone wolf appeared on a large boulder overlooking the graveyard and was soon surrounded by the other wolves. It once more slowly morphed into a figure.

"You have shown yourself to be worthy. The love between you and your brother is strong….stronger then the venom that tries to steal his life. He will awake and be well and you will leave these grounds in peace." The Indian closed his eyes and waved his hand over the area then slowly morphed back into the form of a wolf. The entire pack of wolves then turned as one and headed back into the woods.

Dean hurried back to Sam who slowly sat up then looked around confused, not quite sure what was going on.

"You okay?" Dean asked.

"Yeah….yeah I actually feel pretty good." Sam couldn't believe how well he felt. "What happened?"

"It's late…let's make camp for the night and I'll explain every thing to you then."

Dean reached down and took Sam's offered hand and pulled him up.

"It's over?" Sam asked as he looked toward the burial ground.

"Yeah …it's over." Dean patted Sam on his back as he led him away from the area, but he took a second to glance back and whisper a grateful thank you.

The End


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